NEW DELHI :In a major escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict, at least 100 Israelis and 200 Palestinians were killed after Hamas militants launched a multi-front attack on Israel. The attack involved firing thousands of rockets and infiltrating the heavily fortified border.
At least 198  have died in Gaza, Palestine said, while 70 were killed in Israel as 5,000 rockets were fired by militant group Hamas in a surprise attack. Israel declared war against Hamas, vowing to avenge the fierce attack, and launched airstrikes.
The Indian embassy in Israel has asked its citizens to remain vigilant and observe safety protocols as advised by local authorities. “Please exercise caution, avoid unnecessary movement, and stay close to safety shelters,” it said in an advisory. India has also set up a helpline and an email address for citizens to reach out.
The armed wing of Hamas declared it launched “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” and fired over 5,000 rockets in the “first strike of 20 minutes”. “We have decided to put an end to all of this, with the help of God, so that the enemy understands that the time of recklessness without accountability is over,” Hamas militant leader Mohamed Deif said in a recorded message. Medical sources in Gaza say at least 198 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air attacks launched after a Hamas offensive against Israel that killed at least 100. The group running the besieged enclave said its surprise, large-scale operation was in response to the desecration of Al-Aqsa Mosque and increased settler violence.
According to CNN’s Allegra Goodwin, Gianluca Mezzofiore and Denis Lapin, Paul P. Murphy and Abeer Salman.
The Israel Defense Forces has regained control of the Re’im military base in southern Israel, which houses the Gaza Division, from Hamas terrorists, according to Hebrew-language media reports. The violence erupted a day after Hamas said that the “people had to draw a line to end the occupation” and added that Israel continued to commit crimes across Palestinian land, and especially on the holy site of Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country is at war and Hamas will pay an unprecedented price. “Citizens of Israel, we are at war. This is not an operation, not an escalation – this is war. And we will win. Hamas will pay an unprecedented price,” he said in a video message. Over 5,000 rockets pierced the sky towards Israel as loud sirens blared across the country on a festive holiday morning. The country’s defence forces also alleged infiltration by Hamas militants, whom they consider terrorists. Paragliders were used in the attack and cars passing by were fired at on the roads, showed visuals from Israel.
The Israel Defense Forces say Hamas has taken hostages and prisoners of war since it launched its surprise attack Saturday morning. In videos geolocated and authenticated by CNN, Hamas appears to have taken Israelis captive in and near Gaza, including Israeli soldiers.
the Izzedine al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, on Saturday claimed they are still fighting in 25 locations.The group also said in a statement that there are ongoing clashes at the Re’im military base near Gaza’s northern border crossing with Israel.
Hamas says it fired thousands of rockets and captured “a big number” of Israelis after its fighters crossed into Israel from the Gaza Strip. The operation comes after thousands of settlers in recent days carried out provocative tours of the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. It also follows a major uptick of Israeli settler violence against Palestinians over the past year, occurring at a rate of three per day for the first eight months of 2023, according to the United Nations.
video, which appears to show Hamas militants taking multiple Israelis captive, was geolocated by CNN to Be’eri in southern Israel, which is a village close to Gaza.  In another set of videos geolocated and authenticated, Hamas appears to be seizing Israeli soldiers. The first video shows Hamas militants yank two clearly terrified and stunned soldiers out of a disabled tank. It’s unclear from the video how the tank was disabled, but Hamas has been utilizing drones to drop bombs onto Israeli tanks.Amnesty International has said that Israel’s pattern of attacks on residential homes in Gaza displayed a disregard for the lives of Palestinian civilians and could amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity.
Meanwhile, US airlines are diverting and canceling flights bound for Israel’s main international airport as fighting rages between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants. United Airlines Flight 954 left San Francisco International Airport Friday night and diverted over Greenland about seven hours into the more than 13-hour-long journey, according to data from flight tracking site Flight Aware. The flight is due to land back in San Francisco around 2 p.m. ET. Flight Aware shows that United has canceled a flight on the same original schedule for Saturday.
“The safety of our customers and crews is our top priority,” the airline said in a statement. “We are closely monitoring the situation and we are adjusting flight schedules as required.”Elsewhere, German airline Lufthansa has also drastically reduced flights to Tel Aviv.  A third soldier — whose face was very bloody — is seen lying on the ground motionless near the tank track. CNN does not know the current whereabouts or status of the three soldiers. Another video, taken afterward, shows a number of different armed men around the tank. The three soldiers seen in the first video arenowhere to be seen. People gather at the site of a collapsed building in the aftermath of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on May 11, 2021. Hamas Islamists said they had fired 130 rockets towards Tel Aviv on May 11, unleashing a massive barrage on Israel’s economic hub, in retaliation for an Israeli strike on 12-storey tower near Gaza’s coast. The tower in Gaza was described by Hamas as a residential building. It also houses offices of several Hamas officials, AFP reporters said. (Bureau Report with Media Inputs).

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